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Vita & PS3 connectivity features detailed

Sony is promising a number of connectivity features between its next-generation portable, Vita, and its home console, PS3. Remote Play returns to PlayStation Vita. Vita can also potentially be used as a PlayStation 3 controller.

Much like Nintendo, Sony is promising a number of connectivity features between its next-generation portable, Vita, and its home console, PS3. We've seen the ability for Vita players to compete against PlayStation 3 owners via Wipeout 2048. The upcoming PlayStation Network game, Ruin, can be played continuously, with one save file, on both the PS3 and Vita.

Vita can also potentially be used as a PlayStation 3 controller. "PS3 can send data down to Vita and Vita can display it. You could use the unique features [of Vita] - gyroscope, touch front and back - as a control device for a PS3 game," Sony Europe R&D manager Phil Rogers explained at the Develop Conference.

Eurogamer notes that the functionality would be reminiscent of Nintendo's approach to the Wii U, which features a gyroscopic, touch-screen tablet that communicates with a base console.

Remote Play, an oft-overlooked feature from the PSP, will also be making a return on the Vita, Rogers promises. Remote Play allows you to stream data from the PS3 to your handheld, giving you control of your console while on the go. You could watch videos stored on your PS3 hard drive, queue up PlayStation Store downloads, and even play compatible PS3 games on the handheld. This video from 2007 shows Lair being played on the PSP via Remote Play:

Rogers further detailed "Continuation Play," the feature that allows you to continue a PS3/Vita game with either device. PlayStation Network already supports cloud saves, but it's exclusive to PlayStation Plus members. Will you need a Plus account to take advantage of Continuation Play?

The answer, thankfully, is no. "We have a system called Title User Storage, which allows 1MB of data on our servers for games," explained Rogers. "And that can be accessed on both platforms; you can access that same data. You can save your game on PS3, go over to Vita, pull that data back and swap it between them, so you can play a game at home, take it on the train and continue."

Sony has yet to set a date for the PlayStation Vita, but continued news of its various features has us wanting one sooner than later.